Scowling Minerva
by Diana Bell
Summary: Scowling was Minerva's specialty. She had a scowl on her face as she walked through the doors of Hogwarts. Behind the scowl there was a bright and sometimes wicked girl. There was more to Minerva McGonagall than they thought.
1. Meet Minerva

**Scowling Minerva**

Chapter One: Meet Minerva

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: G

A/N: I have resubmitted this so hopefully it's easier for you to read. Enjoy!

* * *

It's the fifties. World War Two is over. Elvis is about to make the world dance to a new type of music; rock and roll. Television will soon replace the good old radio. The likes of Audrey Hepburn and Alfred Hitchcock will dazzle viewers. 

The term 'teenager' has just started being used. In a grand and old yet falling apart house, Minerva McGonagall is about to learn what being a teenager means.

* * *

Minerva McGonagall was born on the 16th of May, 1940. She was a scrawny, brown eyed baby with dark hair. For eleven years, she lived with her parents and sister. She was a scowling girl. She liked to read and hated getting dirty. 

She didn't have that many friends seeing as how she was 'the bookish snob' at her school. She tended to hate people on sight and lots of people hated her. The other children bullied her quite a lot. She couldn't do anything about it so she let it happen. She'd rather be bullied than pretend to like people she didn't. It's called standing up for your beliefs.

It was a Friday afternoon when she got the letter. It was a cold day and there was smoke everywhere.

She had gotten home from school, her clothes dirty from being pushed into the mud. London was a very muddy place. It seemed like mud had rained on the city.

So when Minerva looked up to her house, she was surprised to see a blindingly white owl sitting on her roof. It looked down at her with its beady eyes. It seemed to be saying "I'm watching you."

Minerva scowled at it with angry brown eyes. Scowling was her specialty; it could make the other children at school run away in fear.

Minerva was annoyed to see that the owl had not flown away but was yawning. "What do you want? How can you be so white? _Everything_ is dirty here!" Minerva yelled at the owl. She wasn't really sure why she was yelling at the owl, maybe she was jealous that it was clean as a whistle while she was covered in mud.

She glared at it one last time before running inside. The doorbell was fairly old and made a horrible clanging sound. Minerva didn't mind, her mother hated it and Minerva just about hated her mother. It seemed like a fairly good thing to annoy her with. "Minerva will you stop ringing that infernal bell!" Minerva's mother's voice rang out, getting closer until the door opened.

"There's a letter for you. _I _didn't open it, it looks weird," Minerva's mother said in an arrogant way. Minerva's mother, Agnes, was a proud woman. She showed little love and treated Minerva as an acquaintance rather than family. It stands to reason she wouldn't open anything weird looking, she might become weird herself.

Minerva picked the letter up off the table and looked at it. It _was_ weird. She was surprised, when her mother said 'weird', it normally meant there was a tea stain on it or it was in some way colourful but this letter was what _Minerva_ called weird. It had a crest of arms on the back in green and on the front was Minerva's address, down to the exact position of her bed. She opened it with shaky hands. What if someone was following her? She pulled out the thick piece of parchment and read.

_Dear Minerva McGonagall,_

_As you are of muggle descent (i.e. you parents are not wizards), it is my duty to inform you that you are a witch. There, consider yourself informed. I imagine the idea is either a shock or ridiculous. If it seems like a ridiculous notion then let me assure you: THIS IS NO HOAX! You are indeed a witch and you have the ability to perform magic. I, Albus Dumbledore, will escort you to Diagon Alley where I will explain everything. Now, the real point of this letter is to tell you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I will meet you at your house at eleven o'clock tomorrow morning. Good day,_

_Albus Dumbledore, Deputy Headmaster. _

To say Minerva was surprised would be an understatement. She was astonished but soon after the initial shock she was distressed. She dropped the letter and ran to her room, tears streaming down her face. How could anyone play a joke so cruel?

* * *

A/N: Tell me if it's worth continuing please. I think I may have gotten her age wrong. If you think it's alright I'll continue. Cheers, Diana. 


	2. Stop Sulking Minerva

**Scowling Minerva**

By Diana Bell

Chapter Two: Stop Sulking Minerva

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: H, who probably won't read this.

The doorbell was clanging. Minerva was sitting in her room; still upset by yesterdays prank. She hated school. The other children were always doing things like that. If she had never gone to that horrible 'place of learning' she wouldn't have been pranked.

She supposed that the person at the door was one of Agnes' gossip buddies, coming to talk about how unruly she was.

"Minerva, stop sulking at once! There's a man here to see you," Agnes yelled. Minerva got up from her bed, not believing the complexity of this prank. She walked down the stairs with an impressive scowl.

* * *

When she reached the living room where her mother and 'the man' were waiting, her scowl melted away to be replaced by a confused frown. He was positively the most bizarre man she had ever seen. He had absolutely no fashion sense whatsoever. Minerva had learnt about 'fashion sense' and 'how to make a sensible marriage' from her mother.

It would seem odd that an eleven year old already knew a whole lot of old traditions that were fading fast, but considering who Minerva's mother was; it really wasn't strange at all.

The man in the room had a long chestnut-brown beard tucked into his belt, long chestnut-brown hair flowing down his back and he looked like he was wearing a rather expensive bathrobe with stars printed onto it.

"I am Albus Dumbledore, I'm assuming you are Minerva," the odd man said, although I guess we should now refer to him as Dumbledore.

"So what if I am?" Minerva replied rudely. This was someone's eccentric uncle, helping them with the grand prank. "The way I see it sir, is that you have chosen the wrong prank to assist. I am not fooled. Magic doesn't exist!" Minerva stated with a very superior tone.

Dumbledore was chuckling to himself. Minerva didn't find it at all funny. Then, without warning, Dumbledore pulled out a stick and waved it at the mug on the table. Minerva's jaw dropped; the mug was floating in the air.

"Right, so if you will come with me Minerva, we will get your school stuff," Dumbledore said and gestured for Minerva to follow him.

* * *

"Your mother has agreed to let you go," Dumbledore said quietly, "If you want to."

"Yes, I suppose I do. Thankyou for explaining everything," Minerva replied, unusually calm and polite. Dumbledore had explained everything. The magical world seemed so delicious to Minerva.

She would probably never tell Dumbledore that but she wanted to speed up time until she got to Hogwarts. She felt like skipping home. She smiled up at Dumbledore and then remembered her wand. The man, Ollivander, had scared her.

_"Minerva? The Roman goddess I presume. Holly and dragon heartstring; good for transfiguration," he had said when he looked at her after learning her name. She wasn't scared by what he had said; it was the way he looked at her. He had this look in his eye as though he knew absolutely everything about her. His hair was wild and he looked like he didn't sleep._

Minerva turned her attention back to the pub around her. If there was ever a dirty place, it was here. The air was full of smoke and the people sitting at the tables seemed to be glaring at everyone. A broom was sweeping the floor by itself repetitively. Every time it did so, a cloud of dust would rise into the air, only to be blown around by a smoker puffing in that direction. Minerva was cold.

A young boy stood up in the corner of the room and made his way over to Minerva. He bent down so he was her height.

"Hello, what's your name?" he said in a kind yet forceful tone. He was attractive; he had dark brown hair, brown eyes and a sharp intelligent look about him. Minerva was too young to be attracted to him but she could see he was attractive.

"Minerva McGonagall," she answered shyly. She didn't know what to make of the boy.

"I guess I'll be seeing you at Hogwarts," he said pleasantly. Minerva noted that he had a nice smile. She nodded.

"That you will," Dumbledore answered. The handsome boy jumped and turned around to look at Dumbledore. Minerva couldn't see his face and seemed to snap out of a trance. Minerva had never talked to a boy like that before; she was used to the bullies at her school. It frightened her that the boy, whatever his name was, had been so nice to her.

She looked up and was slightly disappointed but mostly glad to see that the boy had gone; she wasn't sure to act around people who were kind to her.

"Sir, who was that boy?" Minerva asked Dumbledore. Dumbledore looked almost sad; he put his head in his hands and pushed a few strands of hair off his face.

"That was Tom Marvolo Riddle," he said sombrely. Minerva couldn't work out why Dumbledore looked so haunted. Tom hadn't seemed bad in any way. He looked as though he was the kind of boy that teachers would dote over and children would look up to. He wasn't a bully.

"Minerva, your mother would like me to take you to King's Cross Station on the 1st of September, I will meet you at your house at ten o'clock," Dumbledore said, "Don't move," he instructed. He stood next to Minerva and grabbed her arm tightly. She felt like she was being squeezed through a pipe and then the next second she was standing outside her house.

"How?" was all she managed to ask, but when she turned around, expecting an answer, Dumbledore was gone. She was slightly put out and walked into her house, shoulders slumped.

She started counting down the days on her calendar until September 1st.


	3. Dedalus and Dolohov

Chapter Three: Dedalus and Dolohov.

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: O, just because.

Thanks to Motet for reviewing.

* * *

It was one minute until ten o'clock. Minerva had woken up unnaturally early and had spent the last few hours looking out the window, scowling at anyone who wasn't Dumbledore. One ten year old boy looked up at her and poked his tongue out.

She stepped away from the window to check that she had packed everything for the fifth time. She had packed the night before and was sure she had forgotten something.

The doorbell clanged. Minerva cursed her luck, typical that the second she walked away from the window, he would show up. She made to lift her suitcase and run down the stairs but forgot how heavy it was.

"Ouch," she exclaimed as she fell on her back. She was lying on the ground in an 'upturned turtle' position when Agnes and Dumbledore walked in. He chuckled when he saw her and levitated her back to her feet.

"Are you ready to go Minerva?" he asked in a kind tone. She nodded her head. "Excellent! It was nice meeting you Agnes," he said to her mother, shaking her hand. "Let's go!" he exclaimed, he thensnatched Minerva's suitcase off the ground like one would with a feather and marched out of the room merrily.

'Odd man,' Minerva thought to herself for the umpteenth time those couple of weeks.

* * *

The train ran past the city. Ordinarily, Minerva would have had her face pressed up against the window but today the man next to her was much more interesting. "How many students are at Hogwarts?" she asked Dumbledore. He looked surprised; it wasn't really a normal question to ask.

"A lot, and the number of students is always increasing," Dumbledore answered. Minerva wasn't really satisfied with his answer seeing as how he hadn't really given her an answer at all. The rest of the trip was spent in silence. Dumbledore fell asleep and Minerva scowled at dirty London whooshing by.

"Dumbledore, my ticket says 'Platform nine and three quarters.' There's no such place!" Minerva said in that superior 'I know it all' tone she had learnt so well from her mother. Dumbledore only smiled and continued walking down the platform in between platforms nine and ten. Minerva ran after him and continued to protest. He had very long legs so Minerva had been running the whole day to keep up with him.

He stopped in front of a brick pillar. He ran his hand over the air in front of it then turned around and winked at Minerva, his eye twinkling furiously. Then he walked into the pillar. Or at least it looked like he was about to. Then, much to Minerva's astonishment, he disappeared.

She was flabbergasted. She walked around the pillar but he wasn't hiding behind it. He was gone. Minerva was sure he was gone because she was quite observant and would have spotted him by now. She walked back to the spot he had disappeared and sat on the ground. 'He took my suitcase!' she realized with alarm. She was about to throw a minor tantrum when he appeared again.

"Minerva, are you coming?" he asked with amusement. Minerva stood up and gave him her worst scowl then walked into the wall herself, arms out just in case. She walked forward and kept walking. "Oof!" someone male exclaimed as he fell over.

She opened her eyes and stared at her surroundings. There was a scarlet train billowing steam, children everywhere and parents looking slightly anxious. The boy she had knocked over got up and extended his hand.

"Hi there, don't worry, I'm alright! My name is Dedalus Diggle, who are you?" the boy said in an irritatingly excited rush. Minerva thought he was rather ridiculous and overenthusiastic. He was wearing a cap but it kept falling off.

"Minerva McGonagall, try not to lose your hat," she answered haughtily. Dedalus lost his hat again but didn't seem offended by her tone.

"I'm a first year, you?" he asked in that annoyingly cheerful tone. He dropped his hat for the fourth time since meeting her and leaned forward, waiting for an answer.

"I'm in first year as well," Minerva replied, waiting for someone to come and rescue her. Unfortunately, Dumbledore had already left on 'important business' while she was talking to Dedalus so she didn't really know anyone.

Dedalus giggled in a rather girly way and then said, "Personally I think I'll be in Hufflepuff, which house do you think you'll be in?" Luckily, Dumbledore had told her about all the houses when they went to Diagon alley otherwise she would have been extremely confused. He had also bought her 'Hogwarts: a history' and a book on wizarding customs.

"Oh, Slytherin, Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. I don't really mind," she said with a smirk and then walked away as the shabby hat fell on the ground once more. Dedalus Diggle looked insulted now and didn't follow her.

"I liked the way you handled the idiot, Minerva," a pleasant voice whispered in her ear. Tom Riddle stood next to her, looking as attractive as he had in the Leaky Cauldron. He was wearing his school robes and they gave him a look of maturity that Minerva admired.

"Thanks Tom, he was really starting to get on my nerves," Tom was surprised that she knew his name. He supposed he was right about her being a smart witch. "We should get on the train," Minerva stated matter-of-factly.

Tom grabbed her bag for her and made his way through the crowd and onto the train. "I already have a compartment, you can sit with me and my…friend," Tom said. Minerva was amused by the way he had said 'friend'; she knew what it was like to have people that in all appearances were your friends even though you mightn't like them at all.

He stopped outside a rather large compartment. He opened the door to reveal leather seats, lots of leg room and a slightly older boy with black hair. "Tom, who's the little girl?" he asked spitefully, spitting out the word girl as though it were a disease. Minerva walked forward, scowling all the way.

"My name is Minerva and yes, I am a girl. Tom here invited me to sit in your compartment and I think you should let me," she said with more than a scowl; she looked almost evil. Her eyes lit up and her hair seemed to fuzz up a little. The boy stared at her in wonder.

"I told you, Dolohov, she is welcome here," Tom said in a forceful voice. The boy called Dolohov nodded and looked at Minerva with a sort of frightened respect.

Minerva sat down as Tom put her suitcase on the rack. It promptly disappeared. "Where did it go?" she asked.

"To the luggage compartment, all the suitcases are there," Tom replied. Dolohov pulled out a little spinning top, or something that looked like a spinning top.

"What's that?" she asked. Minerva was quite curious as to what the spinning top was for.

"She's muggle?" Dolohov asked Tom after looking at Minerva in surprise. Tom nodded. Minerva was annoyed, she couldn't in any way see how that was an answer to her question. They were both looking at her as though she was an artefact in a museum.

"What?" she asked quite rudely. They looked away hurriedly and started to talk about their summer.

A/N: Hopefully this is easier to read.


	4. Moody Minerva

Chapter Four: Moody Minerva

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

Thanks to Featherwish for reviewing!

* * *

Minerva ended up sitting in a horseless cart with Dedalus Diggle and a boy who kept shooting suspicious glances her way. When they got to the castle, the two boys stayed next to her, one because he probably had one of those 'eleven-year-old-boy-crushes' and two because he wanted to keep an eye on her.

"That's a pretty scowl you've got there," the suspicious boy whispered in her ear. She turned around to glare at the suspicious boy.

"What's your name?" she asked him. He looked surprised that she was talking to him.

"I'm Alastor Moody the suspicious," he said with a smirk on his face. Clearly he didn't want to hide the fact that he was suspicious and took pleasure in watching her scowl.

"Well, I'm Minerva A. McGonagall the annoyed so maybe it's time you left me alone," Minerva snapped back. Moody seemed to be pleased with her answer.

"I'll be watching you Minerva," he said smugly before walking away. Minerva watched him for a while before turning around to listen to the teacher addressing them.

"Good evening students, I'm Professor Lawrence. In a few moments we will step through these doors and you will be sorted. You will sit with your house and after the feast the prefects will show you where to go. I think we're ready. Follow me," Professor Lawrence said in a bossy voice. The children started to shuffle slowly out of the small room they were in and into the great hall.

Minerva was near the door so she was one of the first to get a glimpse of the hall. There were hundreds of students, all looking at her. They weren't actually looking at her but they were looking in Minerva's general direction so in Minerva's opinion, they were looking at her. The ceiling was what fascinated her the most; it was charmed to look like the night sky. Tonight, the stars were all twinkling and the moon was half full.

On the stool was a shabby old hat. Minerva was glad to see that all you had to do to be sorted was put a hat on your head. Professor Lawrence had been calling out names for the last fifteen minutes. It was taking far too long in her opinion. Stupid Alphard Black. He had sat on the stool for ages. The hat had finally declared him a Slytherin and he had walked to the table with a scowl that rivalled one of Minerva's.

"McGonagall, Minerva," Lawrence called and she looked up with a scowl. She walked over to the stool and picked the hat off the floor where the idiot before her had carelessly thrown it on the floor.

No sooner had she put it on her head when she heard, _"Minerva McGonagall, I assume. Now, I don't normally talk to students so you ought to feel special. What house do you want to be in?"_ It was the hat. If someone had told her a talking hat would determine her future a month ago she would have alerted the doctor. Now, she was pretty much willing to believe anything.

'Well Hat, I suppose I'd like to be in Slytherin,' she thought to the hat. It was true; she wanted to be a Slytherin more than anything. It seemed like the smartest house.

_"Slytherin? That's certainly a surprise. Really, are you sure? I would say you are more of a Gryffindor," _the hat said. Minerva wrinkled her nose in disgust.

'Gryffindor? From what Tom told me it's a horrid house full of exceedingly arrogant do-gooders,' the hat chuckled at Minerva's response. Gryffindors could be like that from time to time.

_"Tom as in Tom Riddle? You met Tom Riddle? Well that explains a lot,"_ the hat mused. _"Minerva we have been sitting here for quite a while, I'm putting you in Gryffindor," _the hat told her.

'No! I really don't want to be in…'

_"GRYFFINDOR!"_ the hat yelled before she could protest any further. Minerva sat on the stool in disbelief. She looked down at the new Gryffindor crest on her robes in disgust. Gryffindor of all places! Tom would probably never talk to her again.

People were looking up at her expectantly and she realized she hadn't moved. She got up and walked down to the Gryffindor table, looking wistfully at the Slytherin table as she passed. She sat down in a large gap and waited for the sorting to finish.

"So, you're a Gryffindor? I can't deny the fact I'm surprised," Alastor Moody said cheekily from the previously empty seat next to Minerva. He was pointing a raw carrot at her in an accusatory way.

"Leave me alone! Although, you are right, I wanted to be in Slytherin," Minerva replied, ignoring the carrot near her left ear. She could feel Moody tense up next to her at the word Slytherin.

"Slytherin? Why on…Earth would…you want…" he spluttered. He had dropped the carrot and was now waving his hands around like a mad man.

"You're nuts Moody," Minerva stated calmly, "Yes, I wanted to be in Slytherin. Personally, I don't see why the hat wouldn't put me there; we argued for quite a while," Minerva said although towards the end she had forgotten Moody was there.

A hand appeared in front of her eyes and started waving around. "Err… Earth to Minerva! I asked you if you really argued with the hat," Moody said impatiently.

"Well that's what I said wasn't it? Why would I say something that wasn't true? Leave me alone, I want to eat," Minerva snapped at the boy. She wasn't used to being interrogated and he was really getting on her nerves. She turned around and proceeded to fill her plate up with various types of meat and vegetables. A raw carrot slid onto her plate.

"I thought I asked you to leave me _alone_!" she said, turning around to glare at Moody. He put his hand up as if to say 'I surrender!' and then said,

"They taste quite good, and you should try one." Minerva's response was to pick up the carrot and the hit him on the head.

"I don't want carrots! LEAVE ME ALONE ALASTOR MOODY!" she screeched. He left her alone. Well, for the rest of the evening at least.

A/N: I know I'm seriously screwing up the ages but I did it on purpose! Cheers, Diana.


	5. Miss Slytherin

Chapter Five: Miss Slytherin

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: S.

A/N: Thanks to Paula W, Motet and Featherwish for reviewing! I was asked why she is called Minerva McGonagall in my story seeing as how she is married in the books and therefore McGonagall would not be her maiden name. I didn't realise she was married and also I can't picture her ever getting married for reasons which will be revealed later…

* * *

Minerva woke up to see an unfamiliar face looming over her. "She's awake!" the face said to someone Minerva couldn't see. "You should get up, we have classes," the face told her. Minerva sat up and looked around the dormitory. There were two girls in the corner, looking at a piece of paper and giggling furiously. There was a girl sitting on a bed and the girl who just woke Minerva up.

"I'm Olive, Olive Hornby," the girl said extending her hand out to Minerva. Minerva shook it but decided not to enlighten the girl with her own name. Anyone who was so eager to wake up that early in the morning didn't deserve to know Minerva's name. Minerva got dressed as the girl introduced the others in the room.

Olive Hornby seemed to be the type of person who everybody knew but few were 'lucky' enough to be close friends with. The two hysterically giggling girls in the corner were Aurora and Dawn Hughes; twins. The quiet girl on the bed was Nadia Fraser. Minerva nodded in each girl's general direction to acknowledge their existence.

Nadia looked at her with a slight smile on her face then went back to sitting quietly on the bed. Without a word, Minerva walked down to the great hall.

"That much jam cannot be in any way good for you, Miss Slytherin," Moody stated as he took the seat next to Minerva. Minerva defiantly put another spoonful of jam on her toast and ate it.

"What's it to you?" she asked him, spraying him with bits of toast and jam. He calmly reached out for a napkin and wiped his face off.

"And why are you so determined to be my friend?" she asked in annoyance. He still had a rather large bit of jam on his chin.

"I never said I wanted to be your friend, I said I'd be watching you. There's something not quite right about you Minerva McGonagall," he said whilst grabbing a piece of toast. After putting butter on it, he winked at Minerva and walked away.

"Not again," Minerva mumbled as she felt someone sit beside her. "I suppose you're 'watching me' as you so bluntly put it," she snapped to the person next to her.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could sit here," the person said quietly. Minerva turned around with shock as she realized the person sitting next to her wasn't Alastor Moody but Nadia Fraser.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you, I thought you were _Moody_, I'm Minerva by the way" she spat his name out as though it was poisonous, which Nadia giggled at.

* * *

The first class of the day was charms. The professor was an old man in his sixties called Professor Longman. Minerva was doing rather badly. It seemed that charms weren't one of her natural talents. "Wingardium leviosa!" she said with a bit too much bravado as she prepared herself for the feather to explode for the third time. Sure enough, it did explode.

The whole class turned around to look at the cloud of smoke that concealed Minerva's embarrassment and frustration. In the smoke, Minerva sat in disbelief. She was so confident when she walked into the classroom.

She felt someone sit down next to her but she couldn't see their face. She was willing to bet a lot of money that she knew who it was. "I brought you feather number four," Moody said. The smoke had cleared enough for Minerva to see his smirk. She slapped the feather down on the table.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" she said to the feather with a neat swish and flick. To her delight, the feather started to hover in the air. She was unaware of the class watching her but noticed when they started to clap.

Moody took it too far and whispered from his new seat next to her, "Well done Miss Slytherin." Minerva gave him a glare in return.

* * *

Minerva was sitting in the great hall alone for lunch. Moody had decided to back off after she threatened him with a raw carrot and Nadia was in the library. She picked at the roll on her plate. She wasn't really all that hungry; whenever she got embarrassed she completely lost her appetite.

After standing up abruptly, she made her way out to the courtyard to sit under a tree and revise for the next charms lesson. Almost straight after she sat down a shadow covered the book. She squinted up at the person who was interrupting her study session ready to tell them off. She was expecting it to be Moody but standing in front of her was Tom Riddle.

She smiled up at him as he said, "May I sit here?" He was extremely polite. Minerva hurried to move her books out of the way so he could sit down.

"Tom, I forgot to ask you the other day, what year are you in?" Minerva asked. Tom chuckled. Minerva waited for the answer.

"I'm a third year," he said. Minerva looked him up and down. He looked older than third year. He looked like a fourth or fifth year.

"You look older," she told him. He started chuckling again. In a way, his laugh was cruel and maniacal but Minerva hadn't noticed.

"Do you want to move somewhere a bit quieter?" he asked. Minerva was about to reply when she heard a yelp from somewhere behind her. Moody appeared, covered in leaves and flowers,

"Minerva, we really must be going! I've been looking for you absolutely everywhere!" he said in a rush, dragging her away from Tom. Tom looked extremely confused.

* * *

Once Moody had dragged Minerva into the Gryffindor common room, he pushed her onto the sofa and started pacing.

"What was that? I was having a conversation! Was it really necessary to drag me all the way?" Minerva asked him, getting up from the sofa. He turned around and looked at her in disbelief.

"He was a _Slytherin_! Not just any Slytherin; _Tom Riddle_! I cannot believe _you_ are friends with Tom Riddle! You're…you're…fraternizing with the enemy!" he yelled at Minerva. His breathing was heavy and he kept pacing. Minerva stood up and marched over to him.

"I told you yesterday to stop following me! I'm going to have bruises on my arm from you dragging me up here! Tom Riddle happens to be my friend and he's a better friend than you. I don't care what house he's in," she replied in a dangerous whisper. Her eyes were flashing like they had on the train. Moody looked at her in shock.

"You're evil, McGonagall," he said to her before walking up to the boys dormitories. "I've heard stories about your friend that would shock you," he called to her from the top of the stairwell before disappearing.

Minerva was hurt. Alastor Moody had called her evil. He wasn't even her friend but that comment had stung. Her mother had often called her an evil child but it was for not making her bed or getting a low mark on a project. Minerva knew when her mother said it that she didn't mean it so the comment was quickly forgotten. The way Moody had said it was so _real_. He had looked at her like she was a monster of some sort. The same way that Dolohov had looked at her except in Dolohov's eyes there was respect. Moody was just cold.

She slid down the wall of the dormitory and started to cry.

A/N: Ok, I added some O.Cs in because I didn't want to change anyone else's ages. For now. Bye, Diana.


	6. Eavesdropping

Chapter Six: Eavesdropping

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: K.

A/N: Thanks to Featherwish and Motet for reviewing! You are both awesome!

Alastor Moody hadn't talked to Minerva for a few weeks now. Tom Riddle hadn't talked to her either; probably out of confusion.

So, Minerva had talked to Nadia the whole time and they actually had quite a bit in common. Nadia was also muggle-born. She was a bit of a loser at her old school but not in the same way as Minerva. Nadia was quiet, Minerva was feisty and sometimes mean.

Nadia detested raw carrots with a passion, which Minerva laughed at. Nadia didn't understand until she saw Alastor Moody attacking the plate of raw carrots and the dirty looks Minerva was throwing at him. At that moment, Alastor Moody looked up at Minerva and returned the glare.

Nadia really didn't understand so she assumed it was some immature argument. She had noticed that Minerva could get a bit worked up over nothing.

At lunch, Minerva was walking with a large smile on her face towards Nadia who was sitting alone. She stopped when she saw Nadia wasn't alone at all. To Minerva's absolute astonishment, she was sitting with Alastor Moody. They looked like they were having a fairly serious discussion.

Minerva, always curious, crept towards them in hope of hearing what they were saying. She crawled under the table, surprisingly comfortable.

"Minerva's nice, I don't understand Alastor," that was Nadia. Minerva couldn't believe she called him by his first name. Minerva always referred to him as 'Moody'.

"There's something fishy about her, I'm serious!" Moody was using that suspicious tone of voice again.

"Moody, honestly, Minerva is a really nice person," Go Nadia!

"Yeah, and I'm a raw carrot," Moody said, dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, you could be with the amount you eat," Nadia said jokingly.

"No, that would make me a cannibal," Moody teased back.

Minerva was getting kind of annoyed from her position under the table. "Start talking about me again," she whispered at their legs.

"Did you hear that?" Nadia asked.

"No, but back to the point, there really is something fishy about McGonagall," Moody continued with his rant.

"That's ridiculous!" Minerva was quite pleased at Nadia's reply.

"Ridiculous? I saw her, with my own eyes, having a conversation with _Tom Riddle_,"

Nadia gasped. Minerva felt like taking Nadia and Moody by their shoulders and throwing them into that closet Tom had told her about on the train. Apparently, it sent whatever you put into it to an unknown location. Really, he wasn't that bad.

"No, she's a muggle and a Gryffindor, how would she know Tom Riddle?" Nadia asked in disbelief.

"I don't know but they were like old friends when I found them talking," Moody replied.

"You actually saw them talking?" Nadia questioned. Minerva had had enough. She crawled out from under the table and made a speedy exit. Minerva would have one or two things to say to Nadia later.

"You were fraternizing with the enemy!" Minerva said to Nadia.

"That's ridiculous! You're the one who's friends with Tom Riddle," Nadia spat back.

"He is honestly really nice," Minerva said in defence.

"He is not, I've heard stories and they aren't pretty," Nadia said with her hands on her hips.

"Oh really?" Minerva asked. She didn't really believe that Nadia had 'heard stories.' After all, they had only been at Hogwarts for a few weeks.

"Yes! In fact, we are going to spy on him and watch him inflict pain on others," Nadia said throwing her hands in the air.

"Spy on him? As in stalk? No way Nadia!" Minerva had had enough of this.

"Yes way! It's the only way you'll believe me!" Nadia was walking towards Minerva with a determined look in her eye.

"FINE!" Minerva screamed.

"FINE!" Nadia screamed back. The whole room was slowly creeping away from the shouting eleven year olds. However, seeing as how they had reached an agreement of sorts, Minerva and Nadia seemed to calm down a bit.

"So, Minerva, ready to go see some evil?" Nadia asked cheerfully.

Minerva scowled. This was definitely not on her list of things to do. Nadia was being exceptionally cheerful and it was kind of scary. Minerva liked it when Nadia was quiet. "Why are you in such a good mood?" Minerva asked rudely.

Nadia didn't seem to be insulted by Minerva's tone. She was about to answer the question when Moody walked past. Nadia grabbed him around the arm and pulled him back. "Alastor, we're going to spy on Tom Riddle, want to join us?" Nadia asked him brightly.

He looked like he was going to refuse but turned to Minerva and said, "Sure, let's solve this riddle." He grinned at Nadia and they all walked out of the hall, Minerva still rolling her eyes at his silly pun.

She looked back longingly at her breakfast before she felt Nadia's hand grab her wrist and drag her away.

A/N: Does anyone have any problems with Nadia? This was going to be longer but I split it in two. So long, Diana.


	7. Sit with us

Chapter Seven: Sit with us

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: S.

A/N: Thanks Paula W, amythestpony, Featherwish and clooless.

Moody was really getting into their 'mission'. Minerva was trailing metres behind him and even Nadia was starting to look bored. They were somewhere near the quidditch pitch. "Moody, give up! We are not going to find him," Minerva complained.

Nadia walked back to where Minerva was standing and they both planted their feet firmly in the ground. "Minerva's right, we missed lunch for goodness sake!" Nadia said, looking at her watch.

Moody turned around and marched confusedly towards them. "We did?" he asked. Minerva rolled her eyes and Nadia nodded.

"Let's just go!" Minerva said when no one appeared to be making any movements towards the castle. She grabbed their wrists and dragged them off towards the hall, ignoring Moody's protests.

Clearly, he still hadn't forgiven Minerva for 'fraternizing with the enemy.'

They got to the Great Hall and were disappointed to see that all the food was gone. "Damn Moody! Why couldn't we-," Minerva stopped abruptly when she saw who was sitting at the Slytherin table. Moody and Nadia turned around and looked suspiciously at Tom Riddle and two of his friends.

"You mean, after all that, he was in here the whole time?" Nadia asked nobody in particular. She sat down on the floor and Moody and Minerva followed suit.

"Well McGonagall, I suggest that you go talk to him. We will watch," Moody said.

Minerva was confused, "How are you planning on doing that without him seeing you first?" she asked. Moody didn't answer; instead he pulled his bag off his back. He opened it and pulled out a shimmering piece of cloth with a flourish. Minerva and Nadia stared back at him blankly. He stared back at them, waiting for some sort of reaction.

"Of course! You two are muggle-born! Ah, well…this is…actually, I'll show you," he said and then threw the material, which turned out to be a cloak, over himself. He disappeared.

"Where did he go?" Nadia asked in confusion. Minerva didn't answer; she was wondering the same thing whilst staring dumbly at the spot where Moody had been standing.

"Come on girls; don't tell me you've never heard of an invisibility cloak," Moody said, reappearing. Minerva and Nadia stared at him blankly, their expressions unchanging. "Well I haven't got time to explain now because we are on a mission. Nadia, under here, McGonagall, go talk to Tom," Moody ordered.

Minerva thought it would probably be best not to argue so she walked over to where Tom was.

"Minerva! Hello, would you like to sit with us?" Tom asked politely. Minerva nodded and sat down in between him and Dolohov. She looked at Dolohov and was pleased to see that he was still a bit frightened of her.

"Tom, she's a Gryffindor, why on Earth is she sitting with us?" a boy sitting across from her asked. Minerva swivelled around "What's your name?" she asked with a smile. Tom knew that the smile was false but apparently the boy didn't.

He seemed suprised by her answer and slowly replied, "William Avery."

Minerva lost the smile and glared at him. "Well Mr. Avery, I suggest you let me sit here seeing as how Tom was the one who invited me," she spat at him. Her eyes were flashing; Dolohov, Avery and her friends under the cloak were all looking kind of scared and amazed.

"I told you," said a smug looking Tom. Minerva wasn't quite sure why he looked so smug, or why Avery looked so astonished. "But-," he began but cut off unexpectedly for unknown reasons. "Minerva, why did you leave so abruptly last time?" Tom asked.

"Oh, my friend is a little odd and had to ask me if I could hear something in our common room. He said he heard a snarling noise," Minerva lied smoothly. Well, she thought it was smooth but Tom was looking at her with one eyebrow up. He looked from one eye to the other and then muttered something under his breath.

Images of the fight Minerva had with Moody surfaced and Minerva found herself replaying the scene. Minerva looked up at Tom and concentrated as hard as she could on thinking about something else. Her eyes started to blaze and she felt herself going red in the face.

Tom looked away with what looked like pain. "I'm sorry, that was fairly rude," Tom said. Minerva didn't understand what he was talking about. Avery and Dolohov's mouths were hanging open. "How did you do-," Avery said but was cut off by Tom,

"Minerva, I have to go. Slytherin calls but do you want to meet us here next week, same time?" Tom asked. Minerva nodded her head with a large grin on her face. Tom nodded back at her and then stood up with his friends, "Until then," he said before walking away.

"How did you do that?" Moody asked Minerva. He was standing a fair way away from her and so was Nadia. "Do what?" Minerva asked. She was getting fed up of all the interrogation.

"That thing with your eyes, it was scary," Nadia answered while Moody nodded violently. Minerva was rather confused. "What thing with my eyes? Was I scowling or something?" she asked them. They looked at each other and then back at Minerva. "You don't remember what you did?" Moody asked with concern. He had forgiven Minerva and was genuinely worried.

A/N: Ok, this chapter was kind of the second half of the previous chapter. As of now, I will be replacing the stuff in the first four chapters so it is formatted like this and hopefully easier to read. No one answered my question in the last chapter; does anyone have any problems with Nadia? Tell me. Bye, Diana.


	8. Same place, same time

Chapter Eight: Same place, same time

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: A, Happy Birthday!

A/N: Thanks lullaby moon, neutralaxis and amethystpony. I'm so sorry that it took forever to update! I started writing this chapter and then it didn't seem right. Anyway, here it is. Enjoy!

* * *

Moody and Nadia hadn't asked her any more questions about what happened in the hall. They both were either looking at her in awe or in fear. Moody regained his 'go-up-to-Minerva-and-annoy-her-while-she's-eating-her-breakfast' routine.

What surprised Minerva was the fact that she actually enjoyed it when Moody came up to her. So, when she felt him slide next to her on Tuesday morning she smiled brightly at him and continued to eat her toast.

"You're in a good mood this morning Miss Slytherin," he commented. Minerva nodded and grabbed another piece of toast. "You know, there's this thing called indigestion, it happens when you eat too fast. Maybe you should slow down," he said, whilst grabbing a piece for himself.

"Yes, I probably should but if I did that, I'd be late for class," she said cheerfully and skipped out of the hall.

Nadia, who had been sitting on her other side turned to Moody and said, "Is it just me or is she in a really good mood? Did you see that? She skipped out of the hall!" Moody's shocked expression said it all. Minerva didn't seem to have a care in the world. "Come to think of it, she's been like this since the weekend," Nadia mused.

* * *

Minerva dropped her books when she walked into charms. "Professor?" she asked uncertainly. Professor Dumbledore looked up from the desk and smiled at Minerva. "What happened to Professor Longman?" she asked.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he replied, "Well, he was a substitute and now the teacher, me, is back. He didn't tell you I was your actual teacher?" Dumbledore's eyebrows shot up as Minerva shook her head.

She picked up her books and sat down near the back. In truth, she thought Dumbledore was fascinating and didn't want him to see her do so badly at the subject he taught. However, the lesson was mainly a 'getting to know you' sort of lesson so Minerva's shockingly bad charms were delayed for another day.

* * *

Minerva met Tom the next week in the same place and at the same time. 

Nadia and Moody had forgotten about Minerva's upcoming meeting with Tom. Minerva decided to keep it a secret seeing as how they would yell at her if she told them. So, she told them she had to talk to Dumbledore about her particularly bad charming abilities and made her way down to the great hall.

Tom was alone. She sat down and looked up at him expectantly. He didn't say anything, he just stared at her. "Err…so how was your week?" she asked. He looked her over as if trying to decide whether or not she was worth answering. Minerva tried again, "So, what have you got planned for this week?"

Tom still didn't reply, instead he rested his chin on his hand in a thoughtful position. "Minerva, may I see your eyes?" Tom asked with a bit of insistence in his voice. Minerva thought it was an odd sort of question to ask. Surely he could see her eyes from where he was sitting.

Then again, there must have been a reason and he seemed and honest sort of person so she leaned forward to give him a better look. He pulled her head closer by holding on near her ears and looked at her eyes. "Brown, nice colour," he commented, "Hold still." He gripped her head harder after the last command as though afraid she might move.

He was now so close to Minerva that their noses were touching. If it weren't for his fairly painful grip on her head, Minerva might have thought they were about to kiss. However, she was a sensible sort of girl, not to mention an eleven year old girl, and the thought didn't even cross her mind.

Tom's eyes widened and he muttered something under his breath. The argument with Moody started to replay. As soon as Moody said Tom's name in an angry and disgusted sort of way Tom got angry. Her head started to hurt even more. Not wanting Tom to see any more, Minerva tried to turn her head away.

She almost succeeded but Tom's hand grabbed her chin and jerked her head back. "Not this time Minerva," he spat with his nose wrinkled up in distaste. A shiver went down Minerva's spine when she saw the hate in his eyes.

The memories started to play again, except this time there were about ten playing at once. Even Tom looked confused. Minerva's head was spinning, all she could feel was pain but she couldn't look away from Tom.

Had someone walked into the hall at that particular moment, they would have seen the reddish light that was glowing around Tom and Minerva.

Minerva gasped when she recognised one of the memories; it was the day her class mates decided to lock her in the men's room. She watched the scene in horror as the slightly smaller Minerva crumpled against the door and began to cry. "NO!" she shrieked as images of her mother, always wanting her to be a lady whether she be two or ten came to mind. She hated her mother and she did not want Tom to see that.

Minerva's eyes blazed and Tom flinched. She opened her eyes wider and glared at him. Her eyes were flashing dangerously. His eyes widened in fear and he looked away. The red glow vanished; the fire in Minerva's eyes shrank to small sparks. Tom took one look at Minerva and then bolted out of the hall.

"My head…hurts," Minerva said to no one. She blinked as things slid in and out of focus. The hall swayed as she fell over in a faint. The thud of her body hitting the floor echoed around the hall but no one came to the rescue.

* * *

A/N: It has been said that Minerva is a little OOC in this story and I agree. However, I think that it would be boring if she wasn't. Seriously, there's no way she would be the same person she was at eleven as she was when she was fifty. I'm gong to try and make her change into the professor eventually but not yet. You'll see. Review! It would be much appreciated. Cya, Diana. 


	9. Awake

Chapter Nine: Awake

Disclaimer: Minerva and all the other delightful characters I have used in this story belong to J.K Rowling as do the places and inanimate objects and…etc. Its all hers and I take no responsibility.

For: G.

A/N: Wow, it's been a really long time since I updated this… sorry?

Minerva thrashed around as the dreams progressed. She dreamt of violence and death. She dreamt of smoky green skulls in the sky…

She woke screaming with a fat woman staring down at her in concern. "Minerva, if I could get you to sit up?" she asked tentatively.

Minerva sat up but immediately fell back down. Her head hurt. It felt like someone had stabbed her. Not that she really knew what being stabbed in the head felt like.

The woman helped her sit up slowly and handed her an ornate glass full of fizzing purple liquid. Minerva had never been warned about wizarding medicine and expected it to taste like the sweet stuff her mother gave her when she was sick.

Minerva spat the liquid out all over the woman. "That. Was. Disgusting." Minerva said, scowling at the woman who she assumed was the nurse. The nurse simply rolled her eyes at Minerva and refilled the glass.

"Drink," the nurse said forcefully.

Minerva glared at her but drank the liquid. The pain in her head disappeared immediately. She felt odd; sort of light and fluffy. "What happened?" she asked.

"Well, a couple of kids found you unconscious in the Great Hall so they brought you here. You've been asleep and screaming for about two weeks. Halloween is next Tuesday," the nurse informed Minerva.

Minerva frowned; she didn't remember even being in the hall two weeks ago. She didn't remember anything.

"Just what were you doing unconscious in the Great Hall?" the nurse sounded suspicious. Minerva realised that it must have looked like she'd been duelling.

"I don't remember," she replied. Although she was perfectly serious, she realised that it sounded rather like a feeble excuse. Minerva used the lapse in the conversation, or interrogation, to examine her surroundings. The walls were glowing white. There were about twenty beds along each wall; most of them were unused. All in all it was a fairly boring place. Minerva was almost certain that this was the Hospital Wing.

* * *

Minerva found herself being accosted by a very anxious Nadia and an extremely suspicious Moody the second she walked through the portrait hole.

"We honestly came and visited Minerva but Ms Hart told us to get out and go to class! How are you? We've been really worried!" Nadia said in a rush. Minerva did something very unusual; she smiled.

"So, tell me exactly why you were unconscious in the Great Hall. You were with Riddle, weren't you?" Moody said aggressively. Minerva stared at him.

"I don't remember," she said with a scowl before walking up to her dorm and changing into something more decent than the pyjamas that she had just realized she was wearing.

A/N: Once again, I'm sorry for not updating. I'll try.


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